President Ebrahim Raesi made the remarks at the first edition of the conference on Iran's cooperative economy in Tehran on Sunday.
The president also attached great importance to the role of cooperatives in the production and services sectors, saying, "About 100,000 cooperatives are operating in the country and about 8,000 cooperatives have begun operation since this government assumed office [in 2021]."
Raeisi further said that since his administration took office, the "cooperative sector development document" was revised after 11 years.
He went on to stress that the share of the cooperatives in the manufacturing sector needs to increase, declaring his administration's support for those ordinary people-based companies.
The president further stressed the importance of stepped-up productivity, noting that to reach the 8% target economic growth in the country, increasing investment and productivity matters a lot.
Raeisi also underscored the cooperatives' role in expanding the country's exports and trade.
MNA/5882708